


Felicity

by eledhrim



Category: Original Work
Genre: Crimes & Criminals, Found Family, Gen, I don’t know where I’m going with this, LGBTQ Themes, Mental Health Issues, Near Future, No Sleep Club, Non-Graphic Violence, Relationship(s), Science Fiction, Supernatural Elements, characters with disabilities, parts of it anyway, seriously these kids need a nap, with some actual family
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-13
Updated: 2020-02-13
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:33:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,767
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22692610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eledhrim/pseuds/eledhrim
Summary: ”Welcome to Felicity, the city of dreams!” the sign said. Or had said, until someone had crossed the word ’dreams’ and replaced it with ’nightmares’.Styx and Pandora Zero were the unfortunate (or fortunate, depending on who you asked) residents of this corrupted city, navigating through the streets as hired mercenaries only their next job in their minds. But when a seemingly simple job goes horribly wrong, the seams of the city start to finally crack showing that not everything truly was as it seemed.
Kudos: 3





	Felicity

**Author's Note:**

> hello! i’m writing a story. shocking, i know. this is the first time i’m publishing any kind of writing, also the first time i’m writing in english (english not being my first language, please be gentle) though not the first time i’ve buried my head entirely in my own made up fictional world. now it just found it’s way out of my phone’s notes app. already huuuuge thanks to peeps who have been so supportive and helpful even before i started writing anything. y’all are amazing and i’m eternally thankful. ♡  
> a lot of things are still changing and moving (lots of post-publish editing incoming) but it’s a start. thanks for stopping by and i hope you enjoy!

Styx ran his hands through his tousled black hair, brushing it away from his face and pulling up the hood of his jacket. The late evening air felt cool but heavy and humid, and tiny droplets of seawater carried by the wind made his lips taste salty. A storm must be coming, he thought. In front of him, a shorter woman with a long and wavy blonde ponytail walked with a slight bounce in her step. She was excited, as always.

He glanced around them. Towers of abandoned shipping containers surrounded them, turning the old shipyard into a massive maze. He extended his hand to brush the sides of the containers as they walked. The strong wind made the rusty metal vibrate and for once he was happy about not being able to hear anything. The sound must have been _deafening_.

 _You sure this is the right way?_ Styx thought, directing the question towards the woman in front of him. Her answer popped into his mind, seeping with both determination and frustration.

_Well, duh. I checked this place yesterday and all the containers seem to have remained in the same spots. I know where we are._

Styx crossed his arms.

_Sure. Just remember the last time we had to navigate in a dark, wet place and got lost. And who almost lost a limb because of it._

The woman in front of him gave him a quick side-eye so sharp, even in the low lighting they were in it could’ve been enough to make anyone shiver. Styx, however, only found it slightly amusing. After 25 years of being siblings with someone like Pandora, he had learned to just brush off things like that.

 _Oh, shut up Styx. How many times I have to tell you I’m sorry about the pool thing. And besides._  
Pandora patted her right thigh firmly.   
_Almost losing a limb? Why don’t you try actually losing one?_

He didn’t see her face but he knew she was smiling.

The bitterness had gone away over the years and a fascinating kind of pride had replaced it. It shone through her thoughts as bright as ever. It’s not every day you see a grown woman with a full prosthetic leg excelling in martial arts like she was born with a black belt. She had always been very keen on training, anyway. Pandora, being four years older than Styx, had been using him as a sparring partner when they were younger. Or rather as a training dummy to try out some new judo throws she had learned. She was still very careful to never actually hurt him and panicked when she thought she hit him too hard. He was never too much of a match with his nearly non-existent physical strength, but he was agile and did get very good at dodging incoming attacks. He still hadn’t had the chance to put his skills in use, though. And he sure hoped he would never have to.

Finally, they reached the end of the seemingly endless maze of containers and arrived at a clearing right beside the seaside. Waves crashed against the pier and sent splashes of water over the edge and to the pavement they were standing on. Pandora took a deep breath and put her hands on her hips, scanning the area around them. Styx pulled his head deeper into his hood. He didn’t sense any nervousness in her, about which he didn’t know whether to be concerned or not. Pandora and confidence usually meant both good and bad things and he hoped it was mainly the good ones this time.

_There._

Pandora pointed to their right, towards an old five-story high storage building around 50 meters away from them. The building was scattered with broken windows and wrecked walls, growingly so towards the top. _There’s a fire escape on the right side that reaches to the top. You should have a good view from somewhere around there… I guess._  
  
Ah, there it was. Nervousness. Styx smiled a little. She really didn’t like heights.

Pandora looked at the building for few more seconds before turning towards Styx. She nodded. 

_Alright. You go up there and I’ll stay here just as we planned. They think I came here alone. Stay as hidden as possible, alright? You’re good at that._  
Her expression changed, brows furrowing. She looked more serious now.   
_Remember, if it starts getting to you, stop. Okay? Don’t mind me, I can handle myself. Promise?_

Worry. Styx put his hands in his pockets and looked at his shoes.

_Yeah, yeah._

_Promise?_

Fear. He lifted his head. Pandora was staring at him with furrowed brows and crossed arms, sea-green eyes — just like his — drilling their gaze into him. Her stance looked like she was angry, but she was scared. She was excellent at using her body language to hide what was going on in her head, but she couldn’t fool him. He had spent so much time in her mind it felt even more familiar than his own.

_I promise._

Pandora stared at him for a moment more, shook her head and changed her expression to her usual smiling self again. She took a step towards Styx and patted his shoulder before walking up to the shipping container behind him. She turned and leaned her back against the rusty metal panel. _Go. And be careful._

_Yeah, you too._

———

Styx crouched behind a half-collapsed wall on the fifth floor of the storage building, still breathless from trying to climb up the wobbly fire escape as quickly and silently as possible. Though, he had no idea how much noise he had made, and if the raging wind had covered it all. Around him, most of the walls had been completely demolished, with only some pillars and rubble left to give him shelter — both shadow and cover from the wind. He peeked over the wall and saw Pandora with her pastel pink coat, still leaning against the container and swinging her right leg back and forth. She somehow managed to be constantly in motion, both physically and mentally.

  
He looked around the building floor trying to sense anything out of the ordinary. The pier wasn’t really an attractive place to hang out during this kind of weather anyway, but one could never be too careful. Random wandering curious minds were definitely not something they wanted to deal with right now. Confident that he was alone, Styx moved closer to the edge, finding a spot to sit down right next to a tall pile of rubble and a large rectangular pillar. He pulled his hood down slightly and leaned his head against the pillar, focusing his attention on the blonde ponytail below him. The wind blew upwards along the building’s exterior side, howling around him. Or he assumed it would howl — not that he would know.

_You said it was three, right? Any idea if they should be here already?_

Pandora’s answer was impatient. 

_Yes. I don’t know why they’d bring more. And why are you asking me that, shouldn’t you be the one to know if someone’s around?_

Styx rolled his eyes.

_Alright then, just wondered if-  
_

Something popped into his mind and he lifted his head away from the pillar. Someone’s feeling cold. And frustrated. They don’t want to be here, never wanted to be. Nervousness and worry, about what? Something meaningful, personal, sentimental. I could work with that, Styx thought biting his lip.

Then another, different energy. Confident, excited, eager. _Very_ eager. Styx shuddered with disgust. An easy feeling to manipulate but not a very pleasant one. They must be the one who arranged the meeting with Pandora.

That was only two, however. Styx frowned. He studied the area below him, trying to make out any moving shadows amongst the dimly lighted lamps scattered along the pier edge. Different emotions started to fill his mind, connected to the aforementioned people, but he still couldn’t see them.

Then one of them stepped into the light on the far right side on the clearing. Styx fixated his full attention on the figure.

The eager one was the first one to appear. After them, the nervous one. Then a third figure. A third? Styx etched closer to the edge, his left hand holding on to the pillar steadying him. The wind made him squint his eyes.

Shit. He couldn’t tell what the third figure was feeling. That couldn’t be good. He knew few instances when that could happen, but he was sure this was not one of them. Or was it?

_...Styx? Styx! What the hell, answer me!_

Pandora’s thoughts pierced his mind like daggers. He blinked and turned to look at his sister again, still fidgeting in the same spot. Her head, however, was all over the place.

_Sorry, sorry, I was focused on finding your... associates. I sensed them and they’re here — little to the left from where you are, in the far corner. Three like you said. The one in the lead seems to be uh... well I guess you already know. And the second one really doesn’t want to be here. So I think I can handle them._

_Alright, you just got to let me know if you’re going to disappear on me like that._  
Her thoughts were still spinning, but she seemed to be calming down.  
 _I was counting on those two to feel like that when they show up. What about the third one?_

Styx rubbed his forehead anxiously. 

_Well, that’s it, I don’t know. I can’t figure them out. It’s like their mind has a curtain, I can see the shadow behind it but nothing else... Just be careful around them._

Pandora’s worry was crystal clear once again. He swore she didn’t even realize half the time how obviously it shone through her thoughts, even if she thought she was hiding it. 

_That’s super weird. Maybe... or no, that’s impossible. Oh, I see them now. Do your thing. And remember what we talked about. Stop before you go over again._

Styx tightened his grip around the pillar. 

_The same could be said to you._

He could feel her sending her sharp side-eyes to his direction, but she didn’t disagree. They both knew their weaknesses, and recklessness was one of them that they both shared. Sometimes only one of them trying to keep the other in check just wasn’t enough.

He pulled himself back against the pillar, closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Different emotions — worry, pride, nervousness, confidence, curiosity, sadness — all pooled in his mind. It was time to get to work.


End file.
